The Rose Bowl generally saw the top team in the Big 10 facing off versus the very best team in the Pac-10 (now Pac-12). These days, if either the Big 10 champion or the Pac-12 champion is playing for the BCS National Championship, a university from a different conference may be picked.

The Big Ten was usually the home team in odd-numbered seasons, while the Pac-12 team was home during the even numbered seasons. Having said that, now the home team would be the team with the highest ending BCS rating. That team will get the East sideline and wears their home jerseys while the visiting school gets the West sideline and puts on their visitor uniforms. The national anthem is played by the band from the team with the bigger BCS national ranking. That team then performs initially at halftime, followed by the opposite school’s band. It is in the tv contract that a portion of each band’s halftime performance be broadcast.

The game’s history has seen a dominance by Southern California. The Trojans have played in the Rose Bowl on 33 occasions, winning 24 of those appearances. Michigan is the Big Ten leader with 20 showings and eight victories. Washington and Ohio State have both been 14 times, winning 7 a piece. Stanford and UCLA both have already been involved 12 times with 5 victories each.

The longest droughts of not making it to the game for Big Ten universities includes Indiana’s only showing taking place back in 1968, Minnesota not being seen since 1962, and Michigan State’s final showing back in 1988. The Pac-12 hasn’t experienced California as their representative since 1959 and Oregon State hasn’t returned since 1965. At the very least they have played, Arizona is yet to earn a Rose Bowl bid in the team’s history.

Some of the teams outside of the Big 10 and Pac-12 which have performed in non-BCS Championship Rose Bowls are Alabama with six appearances, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Harvard, Columbia, and Navy.